The first meeting of the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District's Financial Oversight Committee took place in the School District's Board Room on September 26, 2000. The Financial Oversight Committee was formed in answer to the community's desire for increased communication and understanding of the District's financial operations and a need to generate additional revenue for the District.

The committee is comprised of individuals who were appointed by the Board of Education because of their broad perspective, financial and/or management and legal expertise, and business process orientation. They also needed to be clear communicators and not currently serving as an elected official. Members include Craig Hamilton, Christopher Harding, Babette Heimbuch, Patricia Hoffman, Nancy Ong, Gloria Reisner, Michael Rich (committee chair), and Walter Rosenthal.

A few of the committee's eleven charges include:

• recommending an auditing firm to conduct a performance audit and developing the scope and criteria for the RFP;
  
  
• looking into areas of concern identified by the Superintendent's Committee/Financial Task Force;
  
  
• identifying and seeking alternatives that provide better educational value for expenditures;
  
  
• reviewing annual audit;
  
  
• reviewing annual budget and enrollment projections;
  
  
• assisting in educating the public on school finance issues;
  
  
• assisting in creating more reader-friendly budget information; and
  
  
• reviewing matters that may have an adverse impact on District finances including matters affecting District income and District expenditures.

The Financial Oversight Committee meetings are open to the public and will be held at 10:00 a.m. in the Board Room of the School District Administrative Office, 1651 16^th Street, in Santa Monica on the following dates:

Thursday, October 5, 2000

Thursday, October 12, 2000

Friday, October 27, 2000

Wednesday, November 8, 2000

Tuesday, November 21, 2000

Tuesday, December 5, 2000

Monday, December 18, 2000